"It was the damn strategy that they adopted. I mean, [that] was the dumbest thing that I ever saw," said Molinari of the decision to largely forgo campaigning in the early-voting states in favor of the later, delegate-rich ones.

"It was a very, very bad political decision. I mean, he was ruined before he started," the former borough president fulminated.

Giuliani endorsed John McCain this evening in the Reagan Library in Simi Valley, Calif., calling him an "American hero" who is best qualified to run the country in a time of war.

"John McCain is the most qualified candidate to be the next commander in chief of the United States," Giuliani said from the podium, just several feet from McCain. "He is an American hero."

The former mayor emphasized that he and McCain, both seen as straight-talking, moderate Republicans who would be tough on terrorism, are old friends and did not allow their rivalry in the primary to turn ugly.

Giuliani has a coterie of Staten Island loyalists, who credit him as the first New York City mayor to treat the Island equitably. Like many others, they were stunned by how quickly the wheels came off.

To be fair, the 63-year-old Giuliani was always seen as an unlikely nominee, given his support of gay rights, abortion and gun control, and his messy personal life.

But he entered the race a year ago as the leader in national polls.

His campaign entered a steady free-fall this year after he was forced to dodge news stories about his use, as mayor, of taxpayer-funded security for his then-mistress, Judith Nathan, who is now his third wife, and the indictment of his last police chief, Bernard Kerik.

As Giuliani was mopping up his political and personal spills late last year, McCain, whose campaign last year was considered all but over, began picking up momentum, money and something Giuliani would never claim: Wins in the early primaries.

Giuliani lost in all the major early races: Iowa, New Hampshire, Michigan, Nevada, South Carolina and then Florida, where he expended the bulk of his money and time.

The unconventional strategy of largely bypassing the early primaries and focusing on more populous states produced just one delegate and several sixth-place finishes. Giuliani's best showing was Florida, where he ran a distant third.

The former mayor was banking on the Sunshine State as a place where he could court moderates and former New Yorkers by reminding them of his successes as mayor, from reducing crime and taxes to leading the city's march to vitality from the ashes of the World Trade Center.

But in the end, it was not enough to save his campaign, and McCain is now the benefactor of Giuliani's backing as he enters what is shaping up as a race against former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

Giuliani was also the victim of forces beyond his control. With the nation's economic woes trumping terrorism as a top issue for voters, the rationale for putting "America's Mayor" in the Oval Office was sapped.

Molinari said he fought for a presence in New Hampshire, and pushed to have Island Rep. Vito Fossella's chief of staff, Tom Quaadman, take leave to run the Giuliani campaign there. Fossella, a Giuliani supporter, did not return repeated calls for comment.

"Even if he came in second or third, his visibility would've been up. I mean, he was taken off the planet, for God's sake," Molinari said.

He now plans to support McCain, but expressed remorse at bidding farewell to a presidential candidate who had a personal affinity for the Island, and was hailed for overseeing the closing of the former Fresh Kills landfill on the West Shore.

"I knew what a great president he would've been for this country, and all the things he could have achieved as president of this country," Molinari said.

The Island GOP, which came out early in its steadfast support of Giuliani, has not decided whom to back in his campaign's wake, and some have said it could be several days, if not weeks, before the party coalesces around a candidate.

It would appear, in that case, that the borough party is saddled with a dilemma facing many Republicans across the country: Whether to support McCain. The popular Vietnam War hero is hailed by moderates on both sides of the aisle for his military background and shoot-from-the-hip style but is seen as by conservatives as too liberal on immigration.

Romney says his business experience and time as an executive make him uniquely qualified to right the stumbling economy.

Island City Councilman James Oddo, the Council's GOP minority leader and longtime Giuliani supporter, spoke favorably of McCain while avoiding a formal endorsement until the Island party makes its decision.

"I'm disappointed. I supported him not for sentimental reasons, but because I believed he would've made a great president," Oddo said.

He touted Giuliani's successes in reducing crime and trimming welfare rolls, and making watershed changes throughout city government.

"Right from the beginning, I said I want to talk about Rudy Giuliani's performance prior to that date," Oddo, said, referring to Sept. 11, 2001. "He took a city that people were saying was too big, you could not govern it ... and he fundamentally changed it forever."